Penmaenpool Bridge, Landmarks Penmaenpool, Gwynedd - Wales where to go, what to see and where to stay in Wales

Penmaenpool Bridge spans the Mawddach Estuary in Gwynedd, North West Wales. The picturesque bridge connects the A496 on the north of the valley to the A493 at Penmaenpool on the south of the valley. A famous landmark the rickety wooden toll bridge was built in 1879 by the Penmaenpool Bridge Company to replace the ferry. For many years the Dolgellau to Barmouth railway stopped at the station adjacent to the bridge and although the station is no longer in use (indeed the rail track bed now forms the route of the Mawddach Trail), the signal box has been retained to make an attractive feature. The signal box is now leased to the RSPB as an information centre. <br><br> On 22 July, 1966 a terrible tragedy took place at the toll bridge when a small ferryboat from Barmouth crashed into the bridge when attempting to tie up alongside the George III Hotel. Fifteen people lost their lives in the tragedy. <br><br> Thirty-nine people boarded the Prince of Wales ferry boat on Barmouth quay for the eight-mile trip up the Mawddach but the boat crashed into the wooden toll bridge and all the passengers were thrown into the river. Locals, including the proprietor of the hotel John Hall and chef David Osmond Jones, rescued twenty-four people from the incoming tide but fifteen people died - including four children. <br><br>A remembrance service was held at Penmaenpool in 2006 to mark the 40th anniversary of the disaster.